I keep the w/t on my puter but only access it when I have slept on the puzzle. unles I am so on a roll with teh game that I don;t want to loose the story!!!!

My frame of mind determines whether or not I use a WT. Many times, when I'm stuck on something, I'll visit game sites looking for clues rather than complete answers. I have printed out WTs but use them as a last resort. If I'm in the right frame of mind.

I always print the WT before I start a game. I can usually get by without it for a chapter or two, but always wind up stuck eventually. And it seems once Im stuck Im stuck through the rest of the game.
I am playing DiscWorld Noir at the moment. Played the first 2 chapters and referred to the WT once at the end of Chapter 2. It seems now that I am on Chap 3 I need it all the time.
Also whats funny is I always say before I start a game that I am not going to refer to a WT. I am going to work it out on my own. So much for that.

Printing walkthroughs cost too much printer ink and saving walkthroughs on the harddrive takes up too much space. So here is what I do:

Find the walkthrough online and leave it up. Disconnect from the internet. Return to the game. When you get stuck, press the Windows key (between Alt and Ctrl). This will switch you to the walkthrough that is open on your desktop. Then use your taskbar to return to the game. This will not work for all games but it has been very convenient for many of them.

I first try to do it on my own when I stuck then I have a Dutch and English WT.When I was younger I always print it out
-------------------------------------------------Playing: 80 days,Nd,Sherlock

Thanks L4L , I needed that .

I agree , I won't look at a WT unless I'm really stuck , and even then , I'll come to the board and get a little nudge from other gamers , for something that I missed , like a clue or an inventory item .

If it's puzzle that I'm hopelessly stuck on , I'll go ahead and peak at a WT . I never print one out though .

I will use a walkthrough if I am stuck and have no idea what to do. Sometimes I use it to make sure I haven't missed anything. I don't print them out but save them to my desktop and then I can access it while I have the game open. Although this doesn't work with some games. I will print out a page or two if I come to a particularly intricate section. I also do screen shots of maps and important images. I have a program called Printkey 2000 that lets me print directly without pasting to another app and also do some editing to the image such as crop, pick an object on the screen enlarge stc. It is one of the best programs I have ever used. Kay

Been away from the forums for a while because I have been writing one of those walkthroughs you have been discussing (3 'beens' in one sentance - can't be good grammar).

And my view is: you need all sorts of walkthroughs because the are all sorts of players. Some want hint's, some want step by step instructions, some want explanations. And some want to do it on their own.

Enjoyment of the game is what counts.

For me it depends on how I'am feeling the day I'am playing a game. Sometimes I play during a break in giving piano lessons, means I play for half an hour or an hour. If I reach a problem during that time I certainly use a WT because I must concentrate on the next student and not on the games puzzle
If I have all the time of the world and nothing to disturb my playing, I never use a WT because the trouble to find the solution is soooo satisfactory.
Gimli

Well said, fisicx!

I too write a lot of walkthroughs and RPG strategy guides, and try to stay in tune with what users want. For adventure game walkthroughs, I try to hide the solutions to the main puzzles on separate pages so that the user must knowingly click on a link to reveal the solution. You cannot accidentally see it while skimming through the walkthrough.

Also, when I reference an object, I link back to where you were originally supposed to have obtained the object. That way, if you're at the very end of the game and don't have a hammer that you need to complete a puzzle, I give you a link back to where you were supposed to find the hammer.

Personally, I've been relying on the on-line UHS guides for solving the likes of Grim Fandango and Myst IV. It's more like playing with a fellow adventurer in that you get gentle hints first, which may be just enough to guide you toward a solution. In that way, you get a better sense of accomplishment because the entire puzzle solution isn't in-your-face immediately.

Regards,
metzomagic

Well said---and thanks for writing those WT's---

Metzo, it's great that you link back--nothing more aggravating than reading "use XXXX" and not knowing where "XXXX" is

This thread is so interesting-I'm glad there are so many different approaches to game playing. I, for one, am memory challenged and find it hard to remember where I've been or what I've done, so for me the WT is like a road map. I play along on my own for as long as I don't feel stuck or lost, then refer to the WT to see what I missed. With games that I feel are fairly possible to figure out, I keep a WT bookmarked and only call it up if needed but for some impossibly difficult ones I will just give in and print it out.

I like the Nancy Drew game's method of giving you a checklist of things that need to be accomplished as you go along. I usually don't need a Wt for those most of the time. I believe the Tex Murphy games have a checklist, if I remember correctly.

As for some other games-I find parts of them difficult even with a WT! Thank goodness for those intrepid souls who write them for us